This paper provides an overview of the United States higher education system. It gives readers introductory information about the size, scope and governance model of US higher education. This is a challenging task because higher education in the US is highly decentralized with no single 'system' coordinating all institutions of higher education…

Student Debt and the Class of 2012 is the eighth annual report on the cumulative student loan debt of recent graduates from four-year colleges. The authors' analysis finds that the debt levels of students who graduate with loans continue to rise, with considerable variation among states as well as among colleges. Seven in 10 college seniors who…